Is Jesus Enough ?

Dr. David Herndon

Dedication

To my family, whom God has blessed me with, far beyond what I deserve.

To my friends in SE Asia – may God continue to use your faith to inspire all believers everywhere.

Table of Contents

Introduction                                                                                    4

The Precipitating Crisis                                                         5

More Than Enough                                                                      11

Understanding His Blessings                                           17

The Reality of Hardships                                                         23

Tested and Refined                                                                       31

Leaving the Boat                                                                      37

Taking the Risk                                                                      44

Nothing will ever be attempted, if all possible objections must be first overcome.  ~Samuel Johnson, Rasselas, 1759

Introduction

“If Jesus were to take everything away, would He still be enough?”

I listened in disbelief. This was not the sympathetic consolation I was hoping for. Where were the comforting words, the emotional support I was so desperate for? In that moment I came face to face with my walk with God and the depth, or lack of it, of my ministry. From that encounter in Eastern Montana came a journey of learning to love God for who He is, not for what He does. Join with me as I bring you back to my spiritual crisis and then draw you forward into a journey of discovering the Incomparably Sufficient Christ.

Shall we accept good from God and not trouble? Job 2:10b

Chapter 1

The Precipitating Crisis

The question that so rocked my world was actually a follow-up question to one that had already stunned me: “Who gave you the right to make a bargain with God?”

I had been griping about how I believed that God had not held up His end of a deal I had made with Him. When I accepted the call to leave Florida with a pregnant wife and two year old daughter to take the pastorate of a small church in Montana, I had told God that I would go anywhere in service to Him as long as He would take care of my family.

Two and a half years later I had seen my second daughter born very prematurely and struggle for life and my son born with then undiagnosed multiple heart defects. For over a year we had been from doctor to doctor, doing test after test, only to be left frustrated in being unable in diagnosing his problems.

Attending a pastor’s conference, I saw a man sitting alone before the start of the morning session. Thinking that perhaps he was a new pastor to our state, I engaged him in conversation. After 15 minutes or so it became clear that he was actually the conference speaker, Dr. Richard Blackaby. Seeing an opportunity, I poured out my soul to him, expecting sympathy and perhaps some insights that would soothe my soul. Instead, I got challenged. It was the pivotal point in my walk with Christ although it would be years before I would fully realize it.

Paul the Apostle is a person I felt I could relate to. He suffered much for the cause of Christ. He faced adversity after adversity in his efforts to expand the kingdom of heaven in what we might call pioneer territory. I felt very much like I imagined he must have felt. My wife had come close to dying due to preeclampsia with our premature middle daughter.  We had battled for both of their lives for weeks.

Our oldest daughter somehow contracted lead poisoning, though the cause was never found, and now our newest child had been sick from birth without any explanation. I felt I knew what adversity was like. I felt somewhat like a martyr, struggling against overwhelming odds while serving Christ in pioneer territory.

When Blackaby challenged me, though, Paul’s words in Philippians 3:7-9 began to take on a whole new meaning and I started to comprehend how far away from the apostle I really was.

7But whatever things were gain to me, those things I have counted as loss for the sake of Christ.8More than that, I count all things to be loss in view of the surpassing value of knowing Christ Jesus my Lord, for whom I have suffered the loss of all things, and count them but rubbish so that I may gain Christ,9and may be found in Him, not having a righteousness of my own derived from the Law, but that which is through faith in Christ, the righteousness which comes from God on the basis of faith…

Paul didn’t endure his hardships to expand the kingdom. He endured them in order to know Jesus. He counted his losses not as marks of suffering for Jesus but as a means of gaining Christ. I had suffered many things, but had I gained Jesus? Did all those circumstances help me to understand and know Jesus better or had they caused me to focus on myself, my family, my pain?

My thoughts whirled back a couple of years to when our second daughter was about to be born almost eight weeks early. I was sitting in a hospital room next to my wife. The doctor had just asked me to make a terrible decision. “We need to take the baby now, although she doesn’t have a chance to live – her lungs are too underdeveloped – but your wife will recover. Or, we can keep the baby in the womb for a few more weeks but your wife will suffer irreparable damage to her kidneys and liver. I’ll give you no more than 2 hours to decide.” I remembered looking out the window into the dark Montana sky and wondering how to make such a choice. We had only been on the field a few months. All our family was back in Florida. I had a two year old daughter to care for. I am now being forced to make a decision that will spell disaster for either my wife or my baby. Never had I felt such a weight on my shoulders.

Faced with a situation completely out of my control and with no one else to turn to, I poured out my soul to God, seeking His wisdom. As I sat there that night I felt His presence overwhelm me and His peace to make the decision to have the doctor take the baby by Cesarean. “Trust Me”, was the only answer I had that night. It was enough. Moriah was, at that time, the smallest baby ever delivered at that hospital. She weighed only a little over 3 lbs but to everyone’s surprise needed no medicine or anything other than oxygen for her lungs. That night, before she was even born, I knew her name would be Moriah, after the mountain on which Abraham offered his son Isaac as a sacrifice to God.

I remembered God’s faithfulness and awesome abilities. I recalled how He was all I needed when He was all I had. When faced with an impossible choice He delivered an alternative through His majestic power. Why, then, was I in such turmoil now? Could the God who had already answered a prayer so spectacularly in my life not do the same again? I started to realize that my focusing on my pain and problems had blinded me to the very God who was the answer to those problems. And from that moment on I gained a new perspective on just who He is that has sustained me through many storms.

Somehow I had allowed the cares of the world to supersede my dependence on Jesus. Like the Israelites of old, moaning and complaining through the desert, I had lost sight of my Guide. Now, armed with a fresh vision of who God was, I was ready to face the challenges that lay ahead with my son. Through the intervening years, through all the surgeries, the dire predictions of surgeons, the fears of the unknown, I have never lost faith in the One who Provides. Oh, there are times that I momentarily stop focusing on Jesus, there are times when I allow the things I am doing to overwhelm me for a little while, but never have I gotten to the point of bitter, angry discouragement again. I have only to remember the miraculous answers to prayers God has seen fit to give to my family and I am swept up again in that majestic moment when I knew He was enough.

I had finally realized that it wasn’t about me at all. It is all about Him. I had strived very hard to be a worker that would be pleasing to Him when I should have been striving to be a person He was pleased with. He wanted me not for what I could do for Him, but for what He needed to do for me. I had mistakenly placed my calling into full time ministry for the Lord into a higher priority than my relationship with Him. In Mark 3:14 it says,

“And he ordained twelve, that they should be with Him (emphasis mine) and that He might send them forth to preach.”

Even the calling of the Lord to a great ministry isn’t more important than a relationship with the Lord who does the calling. The twelve weren’t ordained just to preach but to be with Him.  Doing the work of the Lord is no substitute for being with Him. That was the priority that I had been getting wrong. Chip Brogden wrote an article containing this truth:

When apostles love church planting and mission work more than Jesus, then they are saying that Jesus is not enough. When prophets love their prophecies, dreams, and visions more than they love Jesus, then they are saying that Jesus is not enough. When evangelists love traveling, preaching, and holding meetings more than they love Jesus, then they are saying that Jesus is not enough. When pastors love their church services and building programs more than they love Jesus, then they are saying that Jesus is not enough. When teachers love their teachings more than they love Jesus, then they are saying that Jesus is not enough. When preachers love their preaching more than they love Jesus, then they are saying that Jesus is not enough. When ministers love their ministry more than they love Jesus, then they are saying that Jesus is not enough. When musicians love their music more than they love Jesus, then they are saying that Jesus is not enough. When writers love their writings more than they love Jesus, then they are saying that Jesus is not enough. And when the simplest disciples grow tired of "just" being with Jesus, and begin to long for something bigger, something better, something greater, something more powerful, something other than what they have in Jesus already, then they are saying that Jesus is not enough. If Jesus was all you had, would Jesus be enough for you?(Brogden, 2002)

I began to see that despite my desire to serve Christ; my love for Him was more conditional than I wanted to admit. I loved my calling as a pastor. I loved being able to preach the gospel. I loved being able to serve in such an important role for the Kingdom of God. Did I love those more than Jesus Himself? Did I spend more time learning how to serve Him than I did in knowing the One I served? Truly I needed to examine my innermost core and see just where my relationship with Him was at. Could I, would I, trust Him and Him alone? If He took my family, my ministry, all that I was like He did Job, would He still be enough? Did I love Jesus for Himself or for what He had done for me?

This, I believe, is the crucial question for those who call themselves Christians: “Is Jesus Christ alone enough?” If He isn’t, what more do you need before He becomes enough?

These people honor Me with their lips but their hearts are far from Me. Matthew 15:8

Chapter 2

More Than Enough

One of the songs we often sing at our church has a line that goes like this:

He gave His life, what more could He give?

Oh how He loves you, oh how He loves me, oh how He loves you and me!

When we come to Jesus Christ in saving faith, we are acknowledging that He gave His life to pay the penalty for our sin. That act of supreme sacrifice makes Jesus worthy of our love and worship. Even if Jesus never does anything else for us, His procurement of salvation for our souls is more than enough. Any other blessing we receive from Him is simply extra gravy on an already overfilled plate.

When we start to live our lives based on conditional requirements rather than on the finished work of Jesus Christ, we are, in effect, saying that His death was not sufficient for all our needs. We are saying that we need more proof, more tangible benefits before we will give Him the honor He is due. Can you see how arrogant that way of thinking is? Can you see how are attitude has shifted from gratefulness of being a recipient of God’s mercy to one of an expectation of God existing to serve our wants?

We all know of people who started out on fire for the Lord and who dropped out along the way. Many became angry with God for His not answering their prayers a certain way or for not protecting a loved one from harm. If we are honest we must admit that we, too, have become disappointed in God for failing to meet our expectations.

Discouragement sets in when we become disappointed. Disappointment comes from unmet expectations. Our expectations and reality often collide and rarely do we blame ourselves as having expectations that were misguided, ill-founded or unreasonable. We blame either the reality around us or God for not changing the reality to suit our needs.

When pressed by adversity our hearts reveal the truth about us and about our relationship with God. Many believers are in love with the things of the Lord but not the Lord Himself. Despite what our lips may profess, our hearts show the shallowness of our faith. We act more like the crowds who followed Jesus for the miracles of food than the disciples. After all, when one becomes disappointed in God, is it His fault for not catering to our whims and desires or ours for not understanding His ways and trusting in His goodness?

God is good. When we cease to believe that foundational principle we open ourselves up to despair and hopelessness. Even when we do not understand the reasons why things are happening to us, we must cling to that one assurance. Job did. Job was greatly disappointed. Job could not understand why all those calamities had occurred in his life. Job, though, held onto his faith that God was good. Through everything Job never lost his faith in that aspect of God’s character.

One of the ironies of the Christian life is that so many of our prayers center on God healing or delivering us from a life-threatening situation – in effect delaying our arrival at the very place of our reward! How angry people get at God for transporting their loved one to glory instead of leaving them here to endure this sinful, broken earth. It seems that we have lost sight of heaven, that death has somehow regained her sting and become less than just an entrance to eternity and that our selfish desires to cling to more time on earth with our loved one trumps our desire to let God determine what is best for them.

The ultimate healing, the ultimate deliverance is from this body of decay and sin and to be with the Lord in heaven. When we take a lesser view on this it diminishes our faith and trust in a God who is good. This lesson was driven home to me in a dramatic way.

The day before my son, then 17 months old, was to have open-heart surgery, my wife and I were passing through the halls of the Ronald McDonald house where we were staying. People in those places get close to each other since all there are in similar situations. One lady we had spoken with quite often was packing her clothes. “I’m going home”, she said in response to our inquiry.  Knowing that her little boy was very ill and could not have possibly been released, we asked her why. “My boy died last night”, she answered. Seeing our hurt, embarrassment and shock plastered on our faces, she took us aside and said, “You’re not ready for your child to die, are you?” We shook our heads no.  “You need to be. Come in here and let me tell you something.” For over an hour she talked with us about how she knew her boy was in heaven, “doing that little shuffle-step dance for Jesus like he did in church on Sundays.” She told us that she was thankful for the years Jesus had loaned her boy to her and that he wasn’t suffering anymore. She thanked Him for His deliverance and healing of her boy. She praised Him for His goodness and mercy. At that Ronald McDonald house I learned that God loves my children even more than I do and that when we pray for complete recovery and healing it may be that God takes our loved ones to heaven to accomplish just that. God is good in all He does because goodness is a central characteristic of Himself.

Our faith grows deeper when we mature enough to understand that our belief at how God can best answer our prayers is different than His knowledge of how best to answer our prayers.

To be honest, even the depth of a faith that acknowledges that God is worthy because He made a way to provide for our salvation is not deep enough. You see, God is worthy because He alone is God. Even if He had not made provision to save mankind, if He had allowed us to enter eternity forever separated from Him because of our sin, He would still be worthy of praise. He did not have to save us. He made us. He made the earth for us to live on. He made colors and sounds and our senses to enjoy them. God made a universe and populated it with myriads of wonderful and incomprehensible things. He is God. He is the Creator and Maker of All Things. He is Good and Holy and this makes Him worthy to be praised.

Now, the fact that He made us with a redeemable soul and sent His Son precisely to redeem that soul is, indeed, good news. The character of who God is, though, is what makes Him worthy of praise and adoration. His holiness is the reason that He is worthy.  A faith that worships God and gives Him praise and adoration based only on what He has done for us, whether it is a family, a job, a car or even salvation is a deficient faith. God is worthy because He is God.

This was a critical point in my walk with Christ. I loved the fact that He had sent people into my life to share the gospel with me. I loved the fact that His Spirit had drawn me to saving faith in His redemptive act.  I loved the family He had given me. I loved being a minister of the gospel and leading others to faith in Jesus. But I had to ask myself if my love for Him was deeper than even that. Did I love Him just because He is?

In his book, The Painful Side of Leadership, Jeff Iorg makes this profound statement:

Most leaders easily forget their primary reason for being placed in their leadership role. The primary reason isn’t for you to do things for God. It’s so God can use your leadership setting as a laboratory for shaping the image of Jesus in you. (Iorg, 2009)

Was I doing things for God and not letting God do things to me? I had to admit that this was true. I had to ask myself the question again—did I love God just because He is or for what He does?

Do you?

The Psalmist, over and over, tells us to give thanks to the Lord for He is good. His goodness flows from His character, that is, from His holiness. We have to grow as disciples to the point where we love, praise and trust God for who He is rather than for what He has done for us, as great as those things are, if we are to come to the point where we love Him with all of our soul, heart, strength and mind.

When we start to comprehend His character it will cushion us against the hard times because we will not transfer our disappointment in our circumstances to blaming God’s character. Too quickly we think that if He really loved us, if He truly cared about us, if He only understood our needs He would act as we want Him to act. To think like that is to cast aspersions on His character, it is to remake God in our image, and it is to fail to realize His goodness and His sovereignty over His creation. Do we give credence to Satan’s argument that we only love God because He blesses and protects us or do we prove him wrong as Job did and trust in His character to the end of our days?

While it is easy to answer in the affirmative when things are going relatively smooth in our lives, it is a little more difficult when afflictions and hardships come. As people we are prone to looking at the things of God and not always at Him.

We love Him because He first loved us - 1 John 4:19

Chapter 3

Understanding His Blessings

When we gain a proper understanding of God’s character and holiness we will start to also understand the depth of His grace towards us in this matter of salvation. Why such a holy God would even want to redeem a sinful creation like mankind is almost incomprehensible. Yet we know He did and Scripture even tells us why – because He loved us. While we were still in our sins, while we were enemies of Him, He sent His Son to die for us. He desires a relationship with us and He alone had to provide the means of obtaining such a relationship.

God does bless us with many things. He does so because He is a gracious God, not because we deserve any blessings. Grace is the giving of something good to a person who doesn’t deserve it. Mercy is not punishing one who does deserve it. We do worship and love God for the things He has done for us. Nothing is wrong with that. Many Scriptures expressly tell us to praise God for what He has done, especially in the Psalms. My argument is that this cannot be the sole reason that we worship and praise Him. Of course it is proper to thank Him for His goodness – it would be churlish not to. John’s first letter makes it clear to us that we only have the capacity to love and worship Him because He first loved us.

John also gives us this advice in 1 John 2:6 “Whoever claims to live in Him must walk as Jesus walked.” How did Jesus walk? What lessons can we learn from God’s Son that will help us to grow in our relationship with Him? A study of the life of Jesus as recorded in the 4 Gospels would seem to be the logical place to start in finding the answers to those questions.

As a person starts to read about the kind of life Jesus lived a picture starts to form. Here is a man that from childhood has sought only one thing: to do the will of the Father who sent Him. Jesus does not just live a sinless life marked by absolute obedience. He does so while interacting with others. He meets with those who are sinful, whose lives are marred by pain and disgusting behaviors. He interacts with children and spends time with them. He interacts with those shunned by society and develops friendships with those who are down and out. He saves people from embarrassing situations, such as the wedding couple at Cana in Galilee, because He is compassionate.

He is equally at home at a dinner party with the religious elite as He is by a well with an immoral woman. He moves between the homes of His friends and the neighborhoods of Gentiles with equal ease. He meets with those who are pious and with those who are possessed.  In every situation He is in complete control because He has given all of His life to the Father and has found that He is enough. A study of the 5th chapter of John’s gospel shows us in Jesus’ own words how He walked.

Then Jesus answered and said to them, “Most assuredly I say to you, the Son can do nothing of Himself, but what He sees the Father do; for whatever He does, the Son also does in like manner. For the Father loves the Son, and shows Him all things that He Himself does; and He will show Him greater works than these that you may marvel.  V.19-20

The Christian life is not meant to be lived in a vacuum. It was intended to be lived out in the real world, a place where people get dirty and tired. Jesus Himself was often misunderstood, abused, ridiculed, betrayed and eventually murdered. In spite of all that happened to Him He found God to be more than sufficient to meet His needs. I agree with George MacLeod’s statement where he says: “I simply argue that the cross be raised again at the center of the marketplace as well as on the steeple of the church. I am recovering the claim that Jesus was not crucified in a cathedral between two candles, but on a cross between two thieves; on the town garbage heap; at a crossroad so cosmopolitan that they had to write his title in Hebrew and Latin and in Greek; at the kind of place where cynics talk smut and thieves curse, and soldiers gamble. Because that is where he died. And that is what he died about. And that is where churchmen ought to be, and what churchmen should be about.”

Jesus promised His followers that they would experience the same type of life that He experienced. Their lives too would be marked by difficulties, rejections, abuse and ridicule. Some would also pay for their discipleship with their lives. But He also promised that they would find Him sufficient. Paul found this out and recorded for us his story in 2 Corinthians 12:7-9

And lest I should be exalted above measure by the abundance of the revelation, a thorn in the flesh was given to me, a messenger of Satan to buffet me, lest I be exalted above all measure. Concerning this I pleaded with the Lord three times that it might depart from me. And He said to me, “My grace is sufficient for you, for My strength is made perfect in weakness.”

His grace was sufficient. That simple statement speaks loudly. Paul used the words “thorn” and “buffet”. The word translated “thorn” means a stake or something pointed. It speaks of excruciating pain being inflicted upon an individual. “Buffet” means to strike with a fist. Whatever this messenger of Satan did to Paul it was an extremely painful, humiliating experience for him to go through. Paul was also undergoing this trial not because he was doing anything wrong, but because he had seen a vision of Paradise! He was suffering, in his mind, unjustly. It was only on looking back at this experience he could see why God had allowed him to suffer this way. It was to keep him humble, to keep him from boasting that he must be special because he had been given such a rare privilege.

When we undergo our trials, do we entertain the possibility that God’s grace and strength will be enough for us? Do we see that He is with us and sustaining us, or do we assume that we have been abandoned and forgotten?   Jesus has promised to never leave us nor forsake us. Never. Not even when we go to places we should not, not when we do things that we know are wrong. He stays with us even when our actions grieve His Spirit greatly. Because of this, we are be assured that He is capable of working in us to help us conquer whatever it is that we are facing. What a tremendous blessing this is.

Peter also recounts the great blessings God has given us in chapter 1 of his 2nd Epistle:

Grace and peace be multiplied to you in the knowledge of God and of Jesus our Lord, as His divine power has given to us all things that pertain to life and godliness, through the knowledge of Him who called us by glory and virtue, by which have been given to us exceedingly great and precious promises, that through these you may be partakers of the divine nature, having escaped the corruption that is in the world through evil desires and lusts. V.2-4

Did you notice all the blessings in those verses? He has given to us all things that pertain to life and godliness, through His power. That covers everything. He has also given us His promises, over 3,000 of which are recorded in the Holy Scriptures. He has made us to share (partake) in His divine nature by adopting us as sons and daughters into His family and giving us a new spirit and given us the ability to escape the world’s corruption.

That is a lot of blessing! While it may take an eternity to completely unwrap everything Peter is communicating in those few verses, some things are completely clear. God, in His love, has showered us with blessings upon blessings because He is good. He wants to share His essence, His divine nature, with us. Not because we deserve it, not because we merit it in any way, but solely because He wants to. If we, then, have His power, share in His nature, have all things that would pertain to life and godliness, what more could we ask for? What more could God give us than Peter has stated He already has in these verses? Salvation, power for living, promises of a future, morality – all of these are already given. Why should we think that we need anything more? Why should we expect any more when we have already been given so much more than we deserve.

The audience Peter was writing to was undergoing severe persecution and hardship. As they suffered, some complaints had started to arise. “Jesus isn’t enough to sustain us,” they might have cried, “We need something else, something more”. And Peter responds, “Yes, He is. He is enough. He is with you, His power is available. He is enough.” If He was enough to sustain them in their time of sacrifice and martyrdom He is more than enough to sustain us in ours.

When we come to comprehend just how God has already blessed us, it will humble our soul. If Jesus is not enough, if what God has already given us is not enough, what more could He possibly give? He has already given us everything we need.

Coming to terms with this reality is essential to being able to handle the hardships that life will throw at us. Until we understand the significance of our blessings and come to believe His promises in our hearts we will continue to live a shallow life as a Christian. Our anchor needs to be deeply embedded in Jesus if we are to survive the storms of life that will blow against us.

When suffering comes, we yearn for some sign from God, forgetting we have just had one.   ~Mignon McLaughlin, The Neurotic's Notebook, 1960

Chapter 4

The Reality of Hardships

For many Christians, Romans 8:28 is a favorite passage.

And we know that God causes all things to work together for good to those who love God, to those who are called according to His purpose.

To be fair, most do not go on to finish the paragraph. The words focusing on all things working out for those who love the Lord are taken by Paul to the extreme of persecution, personal loss, even to attacks by supernatural forces of evil. Hardships are a reality of Christian life.

For those whom He foreknew, He also predestined to become conformed to the image of His Son, so that He would be the firstborn among many brethren; and these whom He predestined, He also called; and these whom He called, He also justified; and these whom He justified, He also glorified. What then shall we say to these things? If God is for us, who is against us? He who did not spare His own Son, but delivered Him over for us all, how will He not also with Him freely give us all things? Who will bring a charge against God's elect? God is the one who justifies; who is the one who condemns? Christ Jesus is He who died, yes, rather who was raised, who is at the right hand of God, who also intercedes for us. Who will separate us from the love of Christ? Will tribulation, or distress, or persecution, or famine, or nakedness, or peril, or sword? Just as it is written,

"FOR YOUR SAKE WE ARE BEING PUT TO DEATH ALL DAY LONG;

WE WERE CONSIDERED AS SHEEP TO BE SLAUGHTERED."  But in all these things we overwhelmingly conquer through Him who loved us.  For I am convinced that neither death, nor life, nor angels, nor principalities, nor things present, nor things to come, nor powers, nor height, nor depth, nor any other created thing, will be able to separate us from the love of God, which is in Christ Jesus our Lord.

I meet many people who somehow think that when they accepted Christ as Lord all their problems were supposed to magically vanish. Our Lord Himself never promised that. In fact, He promised just the opposite in Mark 13:9 and John 15: 20-21.

You must be on your guard. You will be handed over to the local councils and flogged in the synagogues. On account of me you will stand before governors and kings as witnesses to them… Remember the words I spoke to you: “No servant is greater than his master”. If they persecuted me, they will persecute you also. If they obeyed my teaching they will obey yours also. They will treat you this way because of my name, for they do not know the one who sent me.”

It is ironic that so many Christians want to grow in faith without realizing what this means. To have faith or to trust means to believe in, and rely on, someone or something to either help you or do for you what you cannot. I love my wife’s definition of faith: The hope of a better future even if we cannot see how it will happen. Voltaire once said that faith consists in believing when it is beyond the power of reason to believe. That is the difference between walking by faith and walking by sight. If I can see a way out, if I can figure a way around or through my situation, then I have no need for faith. There is a great verse in Romans that shows the seriousness of walking by sight rather than by faith: Everything that does not come from faith is sin. (14:23B).

That is a staggering statement! Everything that is not done by faith is considered a sin by God. My self-reliance isn’t a characteristic to be fêted. My independence isn’t a trait to be celebrated – it is to be repented of. All of a sudden my desire to grow in faith takes on a whole new dimension. It is not only to grow more spiritually mature but to grow more holy. Now my desire takes on an even more facet of seriousness. I need to learn to rely of Him so that this self-reliance of mine stops. My sins are no longer just wrongful deeds I have done but what I have not done – fully rely on Him. If my faith in Jesus is to increase, He must teach me to rely on Him, to trust in Him, by putting me in situations that I cannot handle alone. I cannot learn to trust Him unless I am dependent on Him. I will not rely on Him if I can do it myself.

Maybe that is why so many professing Christians have such a shallow faith. Could it be that they refuse to allow the circumstances and places they find themselves in to teach them how to depend on God? Instead of trusting in His wisdom and purposes they mumble and groan and complain about their lot in life and miss out on a grand opportunity to develop their faith. Without fully realizing it they have been steeped in sin by not walking in faith. Their relationship with God has been broken and they search themselves for sinful deeds, missing the fact that their sinful habit is that of walking by sight. Is it worse to fail to rely upon Jesus by exercising faith or to stop following Him altogether because things aren’t turning out as you planned? Both, I feel, are of the same magnitude.

Just think for a minute about how God treated Shadrach, Meshach and Abednego when they were faced with death for refusing to worship the king’s idol. Instead of striking the king dead, instead of putting out the fire with a massive deluge from heaven, He allowed these three young men to be thrown into the fire. If He had delivered them spectacularly, He would have been worshipped. He would have amazed all present. He would have been praised – but it would have been from a distance. By allowing them to go into the furnace, these three young men were allowed the rare privilege of walking, talking and interacting with God intimately. Their response to His deliverance didn’t come from a distance, but from a close intimacy.

Many times we pray for deliverance from problems and miss the opportunity to walk with God through them in an intimate way. That does not mean the problems are not real. It does not mean that the hurt isn’t still there. It means that what we gain is not just relief but rapport. We gain not just rescue but relationship with the Lord Himself.

This was what I had been lacking, a deep and abiding relationship with God Himself. Even in the midst of serving Him I was estranged from Him and did not even recognize it. Like an undertow at the beach, I was being pulled farther and farther away from God while believing that I was still in the same position. How sad it was when I came to realize that even by standing still I was getting further from the God who was not static. I was blaming the circumstances, the hardships my family and I were enduring and not my own shortsightedness. While preaching sermons on perseverance and spiritual endurance I had been blind to my own failures.

Both Peter and Paul wrote about the concepts of perseverance, long-suffering, endurance and patience. All of these concepts have to do with overcoming hardships and afflictions as a Christian, not about escaping them. I have met some believers who have the fantastic idea that the more mature we become, the closer to Christ we become, the less suffering we will have in life. Nothing could be further from the truth. I do not know anyone who has developed a closer, more mature relationship with the Risen Lord than Peter or Paul. It is also hard to find two individuals who suffered more than these two men of God.

Paul’s hardships and suffering are documented all through the book of Acts as well as his letters to the churches. He is responsible for formulating the doctrines of Christianity in a coherent way. He launched the first organized missionary movement, pioneered church planting – was even given a vision of heaven itself! Peter was one of Jesus’ three closest friends, was commissioned by Jesus Himself to strengthen His disciples and glimpsed the Transfigured Christ on the Holy Mount! Both Peter and Paul suffered for their faith, finding martyrdom in the end, not a chair in a Christian retirement complex.

When one thinks of the heroes of Hebrews 11, the Beloved Disciple John, the great prayer warrior James, John the Baptist, Stephen and others that we hold up as the greatest believers of all time, we see that all of them went through great times of suffering and loss.

Going through Christian history we find such luminous figures such as Hudson Taylor, Charlotte “Lottie” Moon, Gladys Alward, David Livingston, Horatio Spafford and others suffering for Jesus. Members of the underground churches in China, Iran, Saudi Arabia, and Myanmar shake their heads at the incredible notion that Christianity is primarily about joy and comfort instead of obedience and personal commitment.

On multiple trips to work with the underground church in SE Asia I have seen this demonstrated over and over again. At the risk of their businesses, families and lives they do more than just meet secretly and worship, they evangelize. They have strategies to reach other villages and towns. They dedicate everything they have for God’s use and rejoice to be a part of His grand mission to find His lost sheep. I have been so humbled to watch as they used everything they owned in order to sow the gospel. At a baptismal service they asked the candidate a question I had not heard before. “When they come for you, arrest you and beat you, will you deny the faith?” What would your answer be?

Perhaps it is only in the pampered West that a culture has grown up with the expectation that God is to cater to our every whim. Perhaps only those who have been spoiled by His special providence and protection can get angry when a storm pours over their life. Maybe we need to refocus on what the words endurance, long-suffering and forbearance mean.

To endure means to “abide under or bear up courageously under suffering”, while longsuffering is that quality of self-restraint in the face of provocation which does not hastily retaliate or promptly punish; it is the opposite of anger, and is associated with mercy, and is used of God.  Patience is the quality that does not surrender to circumstances or succumb under trial; it is the opposite of despondency and is associated with hope. Forbearance means to hold up or bear up under something. (Vines, 1940)

All of these terms have the thought of holding up through the storms that life brings, not escaping storms altogether. In the letter to the Colossian church, Paul wrote these words:

"Now I rejoice in my sufferings for your sake, and in my flesh I am filling up what is lacking in Christ's afflictions for the sake of his body, that is, the church."  (1:24)

This is a completely different way of looking at suffering than is our norm. Instead of looking at problems and hardships as obstacles to be overcome, Paul looks at them as an opportunity to serve the Lord. Paul was not saying here that Christ’s death was not sufficient; in fact he argues the opposite in this letter, but that we share in a very real way with what Christ experienced. Dr. Sam Storms puts it like this;

“The afflictions of Paul were the afflictions of Christ: the latter suffered in and with the former because of their spiritual union. In a sense, the sufferings of Paul (and of all Christians) are simply the continuation of the world's quarrel with our Lord. Jesus, because of the brevity of his earthly life, did not bear the full brunt of the world's hatred and animosity. Thus, we are the objects of it in his place.

The world hated and afflicted Jesus without ceasing. But since he is not here, their arrows of persecution, meant especially for him, strike his followers. By virtue of our spiritual union and identity with him, as well as our commitment to him, we endure the persecution and affliction which he otherwise would experience. What the world believes is lacking in his suffering, we fill up. We bear the afflictions which are still intended for him (see especially John 15:18-21; 2 Cor. 1:5; 4:10; Gal. 6:17). As Mark 13:13 states, "You shall be hated by all men for my name's sake." (Storms, 2006)

The apostle Peter tells us not to be surprised when trials come at us in 1 Peter 4:12-13;

Beloved, do not be surprised at the fiery ordeal among you, which comes upon you for your testing, as though some strange thing were happening to you; but to the degree that you share the sufferings of Christ, keep on rejoicing, so that also at the revelation of His glory you may rejoice with exultation.

Why is it that we are surprised and offended when painful ordeals and trials come upon us when Scripture is very plain in telling us to expect it? Peter echoes Paul’s statement about sharing in the sufferings of Christ. Jesus tells us that we can expect to be treated the same way He was. We are also told by Peter two of the reasons why God allows this to happen to us – for our testing and for the revelation of His glory.

“And I will bring the third part through the fire, and will refine them as silver is refined, and will try them as gold is tried: they shall call on my name, and I will hear them: I will say, It is my people: and they shall say, The LORD is my God.” Zech. 13:9

Chapter 5

Tested and Refined

A test reveals what we know. Or, at least, how much we remember of what we have previously learned. A test is a measurement by which we can see how far we have progressed in mastering some subject or endeavor.

God already knows everything about us due to his omniscience, so when He tests us, it is not to reveal ourselves to Him, it is to reveal us to ourselves. God knew Abraham’s response in advance to His request to sacrifice Isaac. Abraham did not know the depth of his faith until the moment came to plunge the knife into his son. Hebrews 11:19 tells us that Abraham concluded, “That God was able to raise him up, even from the dead.” God knew what Peter would do when the soldiers arrested Jesus. Peter never dreamed he would crumble and deny the Lord.

Likewise, our testing reveals to us how much we have really learned and believed about God. It refines us by stripping away our presumptions and leaves us staring at the naked reality of our beliefs. As much as we like to pretend our faith is as strong as the Rock of Gibraltar, testing often proves to us that it is as crumbly as sandstone.

Testing not only reveals the truth of who we are, but it gives us knowledge as to what we ought to be. I may fail a test the first time. Now that I know what is on the exam I can prepare myself for a retake. I now know how I failed, why I failed and what I need to do in the future to succeed. 1 Peter 1:6-7 says this:

In this you greatly rejoice, though for now for a little while, if need be, you have been grieved by various trials, that the genuineness of your faith, being much more precious than gold that perishes, though it is tested by fire, may be found to praise, honor, and glory at the revelation of Jesus Christ.

The word trial here refers to the ordeals that we encounter along life’s journey. The bumps, detours and potholes that we encounter on the road of life are the tests that we must face as we weave our way from destination to destination.   These are those situations that we must push through in order to complete the journey.

One of the most dreaded things in my college psychology class was the unannounced pop quizzes our professor delighted in giving. Not only were they unannounced, often there was more than one on the same day. Talk about cruel and unusual punishment! Very quickly, it was revealed how much you knew or did not know about the assignment previously given. After the first few quizzes, however, one could somewhat anticipate what would most likely come on the next quiz, if one was given at all.

The same analogy holds true in life. Like pop quizzes, our tests come unannounced, sometimes piling up on the same day. While one never knows when the test will come or exactly what form it may take, lessons learned from previous tests can help you anticipate likely scenarios and to develop safeguards.

When I learn my weaknesses, my stress points, my vulnerabilities, I can, with God’s divine power, begin to work on those areas of my life. As I grow in my faith, those who do not know Christ and are watching me will come to praise and honor the Lord as they see me pass the tests of life. They will want to know how I can keep my faith. They will want to experience those same victories in their lives. The same tests life throws at me it throws at everyone else (1 Corinthians 10:13).  My struggles are not unique. That is both a comfort and a startling commentary on how pervasive sin is. I can rejoice, though, when my faith is proved genuine through the testing because it will be used to draw people into a deeper relationship with God. Not only myself, but others will be impacted, both directly and indirectly. And the result – the result is that praise and honor and glory are ascribed to God.

>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>

As stated before, Romans 8:28 is a favorite verse for many Christians but it is more powerful when coupled with verse 29:

“And we know that all things work together for good to those who love God, to those who are called according to His purpose because those whom He foreknew, He also predestined to be conformed to the image of His Son, that He might be the firstborn among many believers.”

The testing that we go through is designed in part to continue the process known as sanctification – the conforming or transforming of us into the image of Christ. Testing is one of the ways God uses to mold us, remaking us into the image of Jesus.

As I am tested, my character traits and qualities immediately surface. Some of them are good and noble. Others are selfish, corrupt and vain. As these traits are revealed I can see clearly how much or how little I resemble Jesus Christ. I see clearly how much I need His divine power in my life and how far He has yet to go in transforming my life to meet His standards. Just as a bright light over a large mirror reveals our flaws, the light of Christ shines upon our hearts and reveals all that is hidden. A very necessary but dangerous prayer is found in Psalm 26:2

Examine me, O Lord, and try me; test my mind and my heart (NASB)

How closely do you want the Lord to examine you? Do you want Him to put all of your actions, motives and thoughts on trial? Would you like Him to cross-examine you as He did Job? The funny thing is, the more spiritually mature you become the more you do want Him to examine you. You want Him to purge you from your faults, your sins because you see how much of an offense they are to Him. As you come to understand the horrible agony of the crucifixion He suffered because of your sins you come to abhor all that is impure in your life.

As I came to fully understand this truth I began to see that life is not cruel, that God is not harsh and that He is actively moving and working to bring me to perfection. He loves me too much to leave me where I am. He wants me to be aware of what I am and what I need to be, hence the testing to reveal myself to me.

Most of life’s tests focus on three things:

1)      Physical needs/desires

2)     Possessions

3)      Pride

Each of these things has a spiritual equivalent. Testing of physical needs and desires is the easiest to see. When we or a loved one is ill or handicapped we struggle to understand why. It is difficult for us to worship when we are in physical pain. Satan knows this. Remember his snide remark to God? “Stretch out You hand now and touch his bone and his flesh and he will surely curse You to Your face” (Job 2:5). Job’s faithfulness under extreme duress stands as a shining example of genuine belief in a God who is good even when life is not.

Possessions are also very dear to us. Faced with a loss of income, repossession of items or destruction of goods in a natural disaster lead many people to despair and lose faith. Job again stands as the example. “Naked I came from my mother’s womb and naked I shall return. The Lord gave, the Lord has taken away, blessed be the name of the Lord” (Job 1:21). We are so prideful as well. Job’s pride was stung by his friends as they insist to him that he must have sinned greatly for the Lord to have dealt so harshly with him. When we are falsely accused, ridiculed and browbeat do we stand on our dignity or fall on our knees?

Pastor Craig Groeschal writes these insightful words in his book, The Christian Atheist:

We cannot fully understand God’s perspective, especially when it comes to pain and suffering. However, we can examine what we know about God and what we know about ourselves. If you’re like me, when something bad happens, you often feel like your pain is unjustified. It’s just not fair. I’m a good person. I didn’t do anything to deserve this. There is one major problem with my defense. I’m not good”.

The good news is that God is not fair – He’s merciful. Psalm 103:10 says that “{God} does not treat us as our sins deserve or repay us according to our iniquities.” Thankfully, we serve a God who is good. One who is full of mercy. In the middle of life’s testing, I can cling to those truths. I can rest assured that He is good, that He is using this to transform me and that it will be used to magnify His glory. With those assurances, I can sleep peacefully at night even when “the howling storms of doubt and fear assail”. I can do this because I know that He is enough.

“Challenges make you discover things about yourself that you never really knew. They're what make the instrument stretch-what make you go beyond the norm.”

-Cicely Tyson

Chapter 6

Leaving the Boat

In the Christian life, God asks His followers to do things for Him. He asks them to go and share the gospel with neighbors, relatives, strangers and friends. He asks some to enter vocational ministry, others to leave the comforts of home behind and go to another country. Still others He challenge in ways that are strange and unfamiliar, ways that take tremendous faith to accomplish. Our response to the challenges given to us by God gives us the answer to the question, “Is Jesus enough?” in our own lives.

At times, we may even issue a challenge to God and be surprised when He takes us up on it. Remember the disciples in the boat on the Sea of Galilee when Jesus walks up to them on the water. Frightened, the disciples cry out, thinking a ghost is stalking them. When Jesus identifies Himself, there is still doubt and Peter throws up a challenge. When Jesus calls Peter to come, he is faced with a choice – is Jesus enough for him to do the impossible? Is Jesus God or is He not? Scripture does not record whether or not any of the other disciples said anything or not. Perhaps they were still paralyzed by fear.

Only one of the 12 was asked by Jesus to step out of the boat. Peter alone was asked to do this, and what a privilege it was for him. What an honor our Lord gave to Peter that day. Some of us find ourselves standing on the edge of the boat, being beckoned by our Lord to step out into the unknown and follow our Lord, and we ask ourselves, Is Jesus enough? (Sr, 2005)

Of course, Peter found out that He was. Peter did walk on water. Yes, he began to sink when he took his faith and eyes off the Lord but Jesus was right there to lift him up again. Can we trust Jesus to do for us what he did for Peter? Can we believe that He will always be there to catch us when we start to sink? Can we trust Him when we are in over our heads and He is all that we have to hope on? Neither the success nor failure of Peter is the issue here—rather, it is answering the question of Jesus’ ultimate place of value in my life. Is He enough? Absolutely! Even if there were no eternal life in the presence of the Lord; if there were no assurance of salvation; knowing Jesus and the privilege of being asked to follow him, right now, wherever he leads, is more than enough. So here we stand with water up to our knees saying with Peter: "Lord, Save me!" (Matthew 14:30). (Sr, 2005) Will you get out of the boat and walk towards Him?

Too often we hold back from following the call of God in our life because we fear Jesus will not be enough. We have been hurt and disappointed so often in people that we trusted to be there for us that we fail to distinguish between fallible humans and infallible God. A wise friend of mine once told me that while God is never late He is also seldom early. Just when we need Him to come through for us, He does. In acting that way, He not only gets the glory for His impeccable timing but we learn a valuable lesson in trust and faith.

Churches, as well as individuals, fall prey to paralyzing fear. How many times do the leaders of a church fail to obey a clear command of God to start new ministries or launch new outreach initiatives because they cannot see how the monies or people will be supplied? Instead of trusting in God to provide the means to accomplish what He has commanded we react in fear and cowardice because of our lack of faith in our Creator and Sustainer. What would our churches, our families, our countries be like if we had the faith of Peter, willing to step out and trust God to provide the impossible?

Peter blurted out, “if it is you, command me to come to you on the water.” (Matthew 14:28) Why does Matthew include this detail? Why doesn’t Peter just plunge into the water? I think it’s for a very important reason.  This is not just a story about risk taking; it is primarily a story about obedience. Peter will have to discern between an authentic call from God and what might simply be a foolish impulse on his part. Courage alone is not enough; it must be accompanied by wisdom and discernment. Matthew is not just glorifying risk-taking. This is not a story about extreme sports.  It is a story about extreme discipleship! This means that before Peter gets out of the boat he had better make sure Jesus thinks that is a good idea.  So he asks for clarity, “If it is you, command me…” I don’t know… but in that darkness – I think Jesus smiled.  Maybe He laughed because one person got it. Peter had some inkling of what it is that the Master was doing.

The lesson you and I can learn from Peter is the same: obedience involves risk. The risk is not in accomplishing anything; it is in the determining if what we hear is an authentic call from God or a foolish impulse of our own whims. Once we make the determination that it is God’s voice that we are hearing the risk is over. We know and are assured from Scripture that nothing is impossible with God and that whatever He ordains will come to pass. I cannot fail at any task He assigns me to do, whether it is to witness to a neighbour, go on a mission trip or walk on water.

“Water walkers recognize God’s presence. Water walkers discern between faith and foolishness. ...Put yourself in the story. Picture in your mind how violent the storm must have been.  It was strong enough to keep seasoned professionals struggling just to avoid being capsized. Imagine the size of the waves, the strength of the wind, and the darkness of this night... These were the conditions under which Peter was gong to get out of the boat. It would be tough enough to try to walk on water when the water is calm, the sun is bright, and the air is still. Imagine trying to do it when the waves are crashing, the wind is at gale force, and it is 3:00 a.m. in the morning… and you are terrified!

Put yourself in Peter’s place for a moment.  You have a sudden insight into what Jesus is doing – the Lord is passing by. Jesus is inviting you to go the adventure of your life.  But at the same time, you are scared to death.  What would you choose – the wildness of the water or the safety of the boat?  The boat is safe, secure, and comfortable. On the other hand, the water is rough.  The waves are high.  The wind is strong.  There is the storm of a lifetime out there. And if you get out of the boat – whatever your boat happens to be – there’s a good chance you might sink!  But… if you don’t get out of the boat – there’s a guaranteed certainty that you will never walk on the water. If you want to walk on water –you’ve got to get out of the boat. I believe there is something – someone – inside us who tells us there is more to life than sitting in the boat.

You and I were made for something more than merely avoiding failure.  There’s something inside you that wants to walk on the water – to leave the comfort of routine existence and abandon yourself to the high adventure of following God. So let me ask you a very important question: what is your boat? Your boat is whatever represents safety and security to you apart from God himself. Your boat is whatever you are tempted to put your trust in, especially when life gets a little stormy. Your boat is whatever keeps you so comfortable that you don’t want to give it up even if it’s keeping you from joining Jesus on the waves. Your boat is whatever pulls you away from the high adventure of extreme discipleship. Do you want to know what your boat is?  Your fear will tell you.  Just ask yourself this:  what is it that most produces fear in me – especially when I think of leaving it behind and stepping out in faith? Vocation?  Relationship?  Successes?  Failures? What area(s) in your life are shrinking back from fully and courageously trusting God? Fear will tell you what your boat is. Leaving it may be the hardest thing you ever do. But if you want to walk on the water, you’ve got to get out of the boat!” (Christ Church, UK)

Remember the verse quoted earlier from Romans 14:23b? Whatever is not of faith is sin? How different our lives would be if we really believed that statement! How different our lives would be if we implemented walking by faith instead of crawling by sight! So many times I think back to the great missionary William Carey and his life’s work. Thought to be insane by his family, faced with seemingly insurmountable obstacles, ridiculed by his peers, the man had an eternal impact on India and missions worldwide because he believed his God would come through. “Expect great things from God” he would say, “And attempt great things for God.”

One of the identifying marks of those we hold as heroes of the faith is that they know, without any doubt, that Jesus is more than enough to overcome any obstacle.  They know that He is more than enough when it comes to provisioning, equipping, supporting and empowering His workers. They take this belief and live their lives in that truth.

I wonder if those of us who would readily agree with the statement, “I believe Jesus is sufficient for all my needs” would also confess that for too many years we have let doubt of that reality rule us. How many churches have been rendered impotent, not because they do not acknowledge that Jesus is all-sufficient, but because they have let doubt stop any implementation of that reality?

One of the churches I have worked with has for years said, “We feel right on the edge of a breakthrough spiritually” but they have not experienced one. The problem has been that they are afraid to step out of the boat. Past failures haunt them. Past victories are too dim to light their way. Too-strong family ties hinder many who feel God’s call to service and eventually opportunities to make a difference fade away. I wonder how long they can sit in the boat while Jesus waits for them to travel towards Him before He pushes the boat back to shore?

How many times must He beckon you to step out and join Him before He moves on and leaves you sitting in the boat?

God is always moving, always seeking the lost sheep. If you sit still you will find yourself getting further away from Him. The gospel train doesn’t stay in the station – it goes out at full speed to the ends of the earth. Are you going to climb aboard and be part of an adventure of a lifetime?

Will you leave the boat?

I am always doing that which I cannot do, in order that I may learn how to do it.  ~Pablo Picasso

Chapter 7

Taking the Risk

Recently I spent some time studying Joseph, the man God chose to raise His Son Jesus. Joseph had a lot of courage. In his response to the four dreams that God gave him in the first two chapters of Matthew, Joseph showed that he was willing to take risks. He was a man whom God trusted to be obedient, to be protective of Mary and to raise His Son. Joseph can teach us many things about risking it all to follow the call of God no matter where it may lead us.

20But when he had considered this, behold, an angel of the Lord appeared to him in a dream, saying, "Joseph, son of David, do not be afraid to take Mary as your wife; for the Child who has been conceived in her is of the Holy Spirit.  21"She will bear a Son; and you shall call His name Jesus, for He will save His people from their sins."  22Now all this took place to fulfill what was spoken by the Lord through the prophet:  23"BEHOLD, THE VIRGIN SHALL BE WITH CHILD AND SHALL BEAR A SON, AND THEY SHALL CALL HIS NAME IMMANUEL," which translated means, "GOD WITH US."  24And Joseph awoke from his sleep and did as the angel of the Lord commanded him, and took Mary as his wife, 25but kept her a virgin until she gave birth to a Son; and he called His name Jesus.

In this first dream Matthew that records, Joseph shows great courage in taking Mary as his wife. He faced down his own emotions and courageously chose to protect Mary even at the cost of his own reputation. Can you imagine the rumors that must have spread through the community? The neighbors would have thought they had broken the Law, that they were having a sexual relationship. Joseph faced the rumors, the slanders, and the snickering. He gave up his good name, his stellar reputation in order to obey God. If God called you to give up your good name and reputation, could you?

In the second dream (Matthew 2:13: Now when they had gone, behold, an angel of the Lord appeared to Joseph in a dream and said, "Get up! Take the Child and His mother and flee to Egypt, and remain there until I tell you; for Herod is going to search for the Child to destroy Him.") God warns Joseph to leave his home and flee to another country. He was to go to Egypt with Mary and Jesus. A small party traveling bandit-filled roads was not safe but it was safer than staying in Israel with Herod on the throne. They would have to go by night, avoid searching soldiers, probably without telling anyone where they were going or why so that the soldiers would not find them. Joseph would have to learn a new language and find a new home with a young wife and a child. Joseph shows great courage without any guidance other than to go to Egypt and stay until he is told it is safe to return.

Immediately Joseph gets up and obeys. Nowhere does Scripture ever record Joseph speaking; only acting. He is never found questioning or arguing, he is simply obedient. If God gave you a task and said, “Go. Now. Do not say goodbye to family or friends, do not even give a forwarding address”, could you?

19But when Herod died, behold, an angel of the Lord appeared in a dream to Joseph in Egypt, and said, 20"Get up, take the Child and His mother, and go into the land of Israel; for those who sought the Child's life are dead." 21So Joseph got up, took the Child and His mother, and came into the land of Israel.

In the third dream God sends to Joseph He again tells Joseph to move. This time it is a call to return home. This was not as easy as it sounds like at first. Once again, he has to leave a job. Once again, he has to find a home. This time he must go back and face questions from family and friends. I can just imagine what they would have asked. “Why didn’t you tell us you were leaving? Where did you go? Don’t you know how worried we were about you? Why were the soldiers looking for the baby? Didn’t you care about our feelings?”

Sometimes, going back home is harder than staying away. Especially when it is to family that does not understand what following God may mean. Many families never will understand that God comes first. Many will not accept it and will refuse to forgive you for putting your relationship ahead of them. Sometimes it is riskier to go home and yet we see Joseph not hesitating in obeying once again. For him it would unthinkable to question God’s commands, unthinkable to delay in obeying Him. His trust in God is so strong that once more he uproots his family and heads back towards Bethlehem.

Many of you have people you have left behind in the past. What if God were calling you to a place that would put them back into your life? Would you go? What if God were calling you to move every few years? Could you do it?

In the last recorded dream (Matthew 2: 22-23: 22But when he heard that Archelaus was reigning over Judea in place of his father Herod, he was afraid to go there. Then after being warned by God in a dream, he left for the regions of Galilee, 23and came and lived in a city called Nazareth This was to fulfill what was spoken through the prophets: "He shall be called a Nazarene.") God helps Joseph determine where he will spend the rest of his days. Joseph, at this point in the story, starts to stop. He begins to get afraid as he gets near the border and hears that Archelaus is on the throne. He knows that if Herod was bad news his son is worse. All he was told was to go back to Israel, not where to settle, and he does not know what to do. God warns him in a dream to go north, to Nazareth of Galilee and Joseph again obeys.

This also took courage. Nazareth was a very small town. It was not the kind of place one would choose to raise a family, especially not the Son of God. Only about 150 people lived in this isolated village at the time. A nearby Roman garrison provided the only work. Yet here Joseph went and here he would raise God’s Son. It took great risk and great courage and Joseph was up for the task.

Joseph’s life was wrapped around taking risks for God. Risks that would cost him everything: his reputation, his dreams, his jobs, his homes, his family and his friends. His reward? Well, what kind of reward do you think God had waiting for him in heaven after doing such a fine job of protecting and raising His Son?

What I would like to ask you, as an individual and as a member of your local church is this: what risks are you taking for God? Is Jesus enough to trust? What is He leading you to do that involves courage and risk? If you are following Christ, where is it that He is leading you?

This is the central question, after all, for those of us who profess to be followers of Jesus Christ. A follower must necessarily be going where the leader is taking them. Where is Christ leading you? What plan are you part of that only God can make it work?

I read a fantastic story of two women in a country where Christianity is illegal. I relay that account here because it illustrates the point perfectly.

“The two women traveled week after week to attend secret house church meetings. They were tired and frustrated that no church existed in their own village. After praying for months for a church nearby, one of the women finally said, “Maybe God is waiting for us to build a church. Why should He listen to our constant complaints if we are not willing to do something ourselves?”

So they decided to take a risk. The two women and their husbands built a church in their little village in the Anhui province of China. The government immediately threatened to tear the building down unless they registered with the religious affairs bureau… the women evangelized by visiting the local hospital and finding the patients that had no hope of recovery. Then they would pray and ask God to heal them. In one year the budding church grew to over two hundred.” (Harp, 2008)

As you wrestle with these questions, God will make known to you His plan and your part in that plan. His sheep will hear His voice, recognize it and follow it. As you hear His voice calling you to obedient action, calling you to risk it all to join Him on a journey that will end with you knowing Him intimately, can you trust Him enough to follow? Is Jesus enough in your life?

Citations:

Brogden, C. (2002). http://www.livingcovenant.com/MiscArticles/Watchman%20Articles/IsJesusEnough.htm. Retrieved April 5, 2010, from Living Covenant.

Christ Church, UK. http://www.cc-vw.org/sermons/matthew14.htm. Retrieved December 19, 2010 from Christ Church, UK.

Harp, S. (2008). http://wwwpersecutionblog.com/2008/05/be-willing-to-t.html. Retrieved January 21, 2010

Houghton, M. (2005). http://www.christianodyssey.com/jesus/enough.htm. Retrieved July 18,2010, from Grace Communion International.

Iorg, J. (2009). The Painful Side of Leadership. Nashville, TN: B & H Publishing Group.

Storms, S. (2006, November 3). Filling Up The Sufferings of Christ. Retrieved April 6, 2010, from Enjoying God Ministries: http://www.enjoyinggodministries.com/article/filling-up-the-afflictions-of-christ-124/

Vines, W. (1940). Vine's Expository Dictionary of New Testament Words.

3 | Page

Table of Contents

Dedication

Introduction

Chapter 1 The Precipitating Crisis

Chapter 2 More Than Enough

Chapter 3 Understanding His Blessings

Chapter 4 The Reality of Hardships

Chapter 5 Tested and Refined

Chapter 6 Leaving the Boat

Chapter 7 Taking the Risk